A hallmark of the Joie de Vivre brand is that every hotel is deeply and uniquely of its place. For the El Capitan Hotel and Mainzer Theater, that place is on Main Street Merced, in California’s Central Valley, and within a 90-minute drive of Yosemite National Park or the San Francisco Bay Area. The locale and the El Capitan properties are further defined by a history shaped by the railroad, ranching, and agriculture, and a connection to Yosemite that dates to a time when Merced was truly the last stop for provisions before the last leg of the journey into the park.